


cross stitch

by tsukkis_dino_plushie



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: (imagine a university town), (they would never admit it though), Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - College/University, Crush at First Sight, Etsy?, F/F, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Falling In Love, Flirty yamaguchi, Florists, Fluff, Hinata & Yachi & Yama are best friends, Hinata isn't dumb in this so don't think that, I don't know how Etsy works forgive me, I'm Bad At Tagging, Kageyama is lactose intolerant, M/M, OOC, Self-Indulgent, Strangers to Lovers, Tsukishima Kei is Bad at Feelings, Tsukishima can't flirt, Tsukki and Kags are best buds, Tsukkiyama Main, Yachi Knits, feral hinata?, he's very smart and I love him, kinda Punkguchi?, not set in japan, so so bad, they call Yachi weasel cuz they love her
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-25
Updated: 2021-03-05
Packaged: 2021-03-17 08:21:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 11,476
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28971249
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tsukkis_dino_plushie/pseuds/tsukkis_dino_plushie
Summary: Yachi asks Tadashi to model one of her knitted creations (much to his annoyance), and Kei just so happens to see his picture while looking for a birthday gift...oh how wonderfulaka// Tsukki falls for the gorgeous man on his Etsy page.
Relationships: (mentioned) - Relationship, Amanai Kanoka/Yachi Hitoka, Hinata Shouyou & Yachi Hitoka & Yamaguchi Tadashi, Hinata Shouyou/Kageyama Tobio, Kageyama Tobio & Tsukishima Kei, Sawamura Daichi/Sugawara Koushi, Tsukishima Kei/Yamaguchi Tadashi
Comments: 30
Kudos: 97





	1. yachi DEFINETLY owes tadashi

**Author's Note:**

> Hello to my first multi-chaptered fic!
> 
> That's saying, that it might be a choppy, so suggestions are welcome!
> 
> I got this idea a while ago and this has been in progress for a LONG time, so BOY AM I GLAD THAT ITS FINALLY STARTED.
> 
> I happen to love the friendship AU between Kageyama and Tsukishima, and I will die with the fact that they are friends (even if tsukki doesn't want to admit it :P). Also, Yachi, Hinata, and Yamaguchi are really close in this (childhood friends) so they alternate between last names, first names, and nicknames, so don't let that confuse ya. Hinata is also fuckin smart in this (because im such an OOC simp lmao).
> 
> Don't have any song recs this time but should have them soon! This chapter should be a very fluffy one, so any cheery and lovely song you could think of would go incredible with this!
> 
> I hope you enjoy reading!!

Yachi owed Tadashi.

Yachi owed Tadashi, cuz this was the FIFTH time in over two months that he was sitting on a very fluffy couch, wearing a fluffy (but not very comfortable) white knit scarf. Because while Yachi was phenomenal at other aspects of art, knitting wasn't the strongest card in her deck. Tadashi struggled not to frown as the weird sparkles Yachi intertwined between the yarn itched his neck. 

"Yama stop frowning! You look like I'm holding you hostage."

Tadashi gave her a stink eye at this, "Because you are holding me hostage weasel. I wanted to go home an HOUR ago. But no. Because 'Yama it'll take a few minutes' or 'Tadashi stop being mean.' Please just let me go homeeee." he ended, hitching up his voice at the points where he imitated Yachi.

Yachi threw a throw pillow at him and stuck out her tongue, "It's not my fault you're my most good looking friend." 

Hinata decided that this would be a good time to look up from his computer, throwing on a look of anguish. 

"Yachi!! What about me?!" he yelled, his eyebrows knit with fake hurt. 

Stifling a giggle, Yachi picked up her camera and adjusted the lens, "You're my second most good looking friend, so in the off chance that Tadashi isn't there, you can model!"

Hinata's mouth was about to twist to a smile when Yachi interrupted, "Wait no you can model, if Kiyoko isn't around. Or Kanaoka. Or Suga-San. If neither of them are there, THEN you can model," she ended with a mischievous twinkle in her eyes. 

Hinata pouted, letting out a "HMPH" and turning back to his psychology homework. 

Tadashi looked at his ginger headed friend. No one couldn't deny that he was one hell of a human. With an undercut and shaggy orange hair that complimented his face structure, he had really grown into his looks from high school. He had grown into his body as well, the sleeves of his white t-shirt stretching to fit his biceps, and the cloth of his joggers capturing his legs perfectly. Hinata was also one of the only people Tadashi knew who was majoring in two degrees, one in psychology and one in business, something that Tadashi could only dream of. 

Shifting his focus to his female friend, Yachi had also grown a shit ton since high school. Her blonde hair had grown to her shoulders, soft pink highlights visible between strands. One of her ears was adorned with a small diamond stud, while the other had a long chain like earring. It also made sense that her ahem- 'chest' area had grown as well, all of them in their junior year of college. Her pink sweater and maroon open leg pants fit her well, and she was up to Tadashi's shoulder now, something she wasn't in high school. 

Tadashi could definitely say with full confidence that he was surrounded by some of the most attractive people around, and it was only Yachi's luck that people around her were godly as well. Which is why Tadashi still couldn't UNDERSTAND WHY HE WAS HERE. 

“Hinata’s right Yachi. Why am I here when there’s a perfectly  _ ehhh _ model right in front of you?” Tadashi quipped, making sure that he didn’t look at Hinata’s eyes. Hinata didn’t register it at first and a second passed before he quickly looked up with a bewildered face. 

“HEY I'M NOT THAT BAD!”

Yachi and Tadashi burst out laughing, Tadashi clutching his stomach as he slid down the couch. He could barely feel the cloth of the pillow that Hinata threw, and only looked up when he heard the shutter of a camera. He looked up only to see Yachi with a bright look in her eyes, her grin spreading every second. 

“Hinata you’re a genius. I finally got the shot I need!” she said as she ran over to straggle Hinata in a hug. 

“Get off me weasel! It’s always been my motto not to be friends with meanies and you guys are proving my motto wrong. NO one proves my motto wrong,” Hinata said while pouting.

Tadashi giggled and stepped towards the couch. “You’re not fooling anyone Hinata. We know that you looove us~” he crooned as he plopped onto the couch on the other side of Hinata, putting his feet across Hinata’s lap. 

“MY HOMEWORK?! Get off Yama!” Hinata shrieked.

Both Yachi and Tadashi made eye contact and nodded before quickly taking Hinata’s laptop off his lap and jumping on him. Hinata let out an ‘oof’ and yelled, before bursting out in giggles with Yachi and Tadashi. 

Tadashi looked at both of his friends and cringed. Both of his friends were drop dead gorgeous and he couldn’t live up to it. He could feel his smile retract and his eyes fall. As he started to stare into space, he was abruptly brought back with ‘aHEM’. 

“Yamaguchi stop it.”

“Wha-what do you mean?” Tadashi stuttered out, very surprised. He looked up to see two very level looks, both of their faces void of any emotion except exasperation.

Hinata started while heavily lifting his arm and smacking Tadashi's shoulder, "We can see you're spiraling down to that trench which is your self esteem."

Tadashi lifted up a finger to reject the claims, only to be interrupted by the only female in the room.

"Yama, you don't have to hide it! It's okay to feel like that sometimes, and we'll always be there to help you out," Yachi crooned while rubbing the area that Hinata had (painfully) smacked. 

Tadashi let down the finger he was holding up and felt his smile return. He lunged at his friends in another hug. 

“Ughhh you guyyyyyss! You’re the best!” he growled while nuzzling his friends. Hinata smacked Tadashi’s arm with an annoyed look face, while Yachi simply giggled as she messed up Tadashi’s hair. 

Soon all of them were in a cuddle pile. Hinata - now done with psychology - was just finishing his business paper, Tadashi laying on his lap while doing a Quizlet on his phone. Yachi finished up the final touches on the picture before submitting on Etsy. Sliding out of the app, she was scrolling through Instagram, when the notification popped up. 

_ Tsukishima Kei has purchased your item.  _

Yachi’s face twisted into confusion before brightening up. “GUys guys guys guys! Someone already bought the scarf. Ahhhh Tadashi you’re my good luck charm I swear,” she spewed out while tapping at her phone.

Hinata looked at her in shock, “Already? Didn’t you just put it up?”

“I know! That’s why I’m so surprised,” Yachi exclaimed before gasping, “Oh my god he’s offering an extra twenty if I can get it to him by today! He even gave me an address!”

Tadashi smiled at her, “Ahhh that’s great weasel, get that bank.” Tadashi expected to see her all smiley, but was a bit surprised to see a frown on her face. 

Erupting in a fit and a frown, she scowled as she complained, “I have a mandatory seminar with Sakura-sensei.” Her frown stayed on her face, until an apparent light bulb ticked off in her head. “Could one of you drop it off for me?” she questioned, hope evident in her words.

Hinata immediately shook his head, “I got a lecture in twenty, then volleyball practice right after.” 

Yachi quickly shifted her gaze towards Tadashi. He quickly shifted his eyes in an effort to avoid her pleading look. 

“Pleeeaaseeee, Yamaguchi! I’ll bleach for you! Twice! Please??” Yachi pleaded. 

That stopped Yamaguchi in his tracks. More than anything, bleaching his dual-colored hair annoyed him the most, and Yachi knew that. Slowly he looked at her, and sighed.

“Where do I need to go?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey hey hey! Sorry for that mild cliffhanger! Hope you enjoyed reading!
> 
> I'll try to get chapters out quickly (might be short as school is an asshole), so please be patient!
> 
> This is kind of a self indulgent fic, and it probably won't have any main conflict other than their emotions, so only happy times!
> 
> See ya next time!! (Comments and Suggestions are welcome!)


	2. what a coin dance

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hellooooo~
> 
> I'm actually able to to publish a chapter of a story on time! *pats self on back*
> 
> Looking at my plan for the story, I'm realizing that this will probably be a kinda slow burn, purely because of the amount of words I can write per chapter without fainting of burnout, but I know for a fact that it will end up being nice and sweet. 
> 
> ALSO, pretty important considering the premise but, I have no idea how Esty works so please be lenient with that part. 
> 
> I am also such a fan of the Kageyama and Tsukki friendship, and I can assure you they are only friends! (although the ship is *chefs kiss*)
> 
> That should be it, so I hope you enjoy reading!

So clearly, money management was the issue here. It had to be. 

Because why else would Kei buy a thirty-five dollar scarf, then offer twenty MORE dollars to get it today. Why would he do that? He himself had no idea. 

Maybe it was the fact that Tobio’s birthday was in two days and he panicked? Or maybe it was because Suga told him Tobio liked knitted stuff, he saw the scarf then he panicked? It could also be the near celestial being Kei saw above the listing and he panicked?

You know, he probably just panicked. 

Kei facepalmed and let his hand drag down his face. He looked at his laptop screen, almost burning a hole into the screen, the scarf listing innocently changing to sold. Almost instantaneously, two pings notified him of his purchase, one from the seller - YachiYarn, the listing says, Kei has to avoid rolling his eyes - asking about where he would come to pick it up. 

Thinking for a second, Kei realizes that he hadn’t even asked if he COULD pick it up. This person could live in Dinosaur, Colorado for all he knew. Kei racked his mind for a second, quickly typing out a message and desperately trying to not sound like a creep. 

**Me** **:** _ Hey, so sorry about this, but do you mind telling me what city you’re in? I forgot to even ask. _

**YachiYarn** **:** _ Oh oops! Of course!! I live in Anemo City! Near HQ University? Are you located anywhere near that area? _

Kei released a sigh of relief. He went to HQ University, so there was really no problem. Kei found a cafe nearby, and copied the address.

**Me** **:** _ That’s really close to where I am, so that’s good. Is this cafe okay?  _ _ Sakanoshita Cafe _

**YachiYarn** **:** _ That sounds good to me! What time is okay? _

Kei looked at his watch. He had a lecture in an hour and was going to meet Tobio right after. And by then it would be too late to meet anyone. He hummed in doubt before deciding on a response.

**Me** **:** _It might be sudden, but can you do half-an hour?_

It takes a while for YachiYarn to respond, Kei assuming that they’re checking their schedule. 

**YachiYarn** **:** _That’s good! You’ll have your scarf in half-an hour!!!_

Kei stared at the three exclamation points at the end of the sentence and rolled his eyes. Unnecessary punctuation really ticked him off for some reason. Glancing at his watch, he realized it would take a bit of time to get to the cafe, and that he should probably start now. 

Slipping on his cardigan, Kei shook his head to style it, not bothering to comb it. Tobio would always make fun of him for that. He would also never take responsibility, placing the blame on his older sister for her hairdresser genes (Kei knew that definitely was not how it worked, but it was funnier this way). 

Tobio wasn’t really his friend at the beginning. In fact, Kei absolutely despised him when they first met. Tobio was incredibly aloof and to Kei, it seemed like he didn’t have the ability to think about more than one thing at a time. Unfortunately for Kei, one fateful science project had forced them to have to bond somewhat, and somehow (even they don’t know) they became friends. It was likely due to the fact that after middle school, Tobio didn’t know anyone and Kei didn’t WANT to know anyone. And while people may not think so, they were close enough to be roommates. That, and rent was SO much cheaper. 

While he and Tobio didn’t have pajama parties, they did meet up at cafe’s. And it was at these cafes where Kei would get made fun of for his love of sweets and where Tobio would get made fun for being lactose intolerant. Their friendship wouldn’t really look like one to outside people, but both of them knew that it was there. 

No matter how much their friendship was apparent however, it wouldn’t stop the fact that...well that Kei forgot Tobio’s birthday. So in a frantic panic (that he would never admit to having), he asked Suga on what he could get on a short notice, getting an Etsy link to scarves in response. He didn’t really know what to do, so he just scrolled for a bit, but stopped dead in his tracks.

The listing was a whitish-cream yarn infinity scarf, little strings of sparkly silver string making the scarf seem like it’s glowing. Overall it looked like a wonderful scarf. What made Kei stop was the person IN the picture. Wearing probably one of the most beautiful smiles Kei had ever seen, the person’s eyes narrowed with happiness. He had a gorgeous smother of freckles across his cheekbones, and he had a singular dimple, accentuating the aforementioned freckles. He looked like he was mid laugh, and you could see a set of pearly whites shining from his mouth. The person had neck length green hair with tidbits of gray showing in the picture. The guy was absolutely stunning.

Kei feels like his cheeks warm up thinking about the person on the listing, a dopey smile spreading on his face. Based on the picture alone, Kei could tell that if he had met this guy outside of the restraints of the internet, he would have completely fallen. The chilly wind on the way to the cafe was enough to make the warmth in his cheeks go away. Kei’s smile returned thinking about the piece of crepe cake at Sakanoshita. 

Soon enough, he reached the cafe, wrapping his hands around the cold handle and pulling the door open. Stepping in, Kei scanned around the cafe before realizing he has no idea what YachiYarn looks like. Whipping his phone out, he quickly opens up the messenger app to YachiYarn’s number.

**Me** **:** _ Hey, what do you look like? _

**YachiYarn** **:** _ Oh I forgot to mention! I wasn’t able to make it, so my friend is delivering it for me! He should be there now! He has green and grey hair, and he’s wearing a dark blue hoodie! Sorry for not mentioning! _

Kei rolled his eyes at the exclamation points before re-reading the message. ‘ _ Green and grey hair? That seemed familiar,’  _ Kei thinks. Once again scanning the restaurant for anyone fitting the description, he sees the back of a green haired head. The hair pulled into a ponytail, letting the grey underside take center stage. ‘ _ This really seems familiar?’ _ he thinks. Lowering his gaze, Kei sees the guy wearing a dark blue hoodie. ‘ _ Just like YachiYarn said _ ,’ he thinks as he approaches the table where the guy is sitting. 

Kei would rather not spend too much time talking to whoever this is, so he walks to the side of the small table, right in front of the guy. He opens his bag to take out his phone, assuming that whoever this is will check the order confirmation.

“Hey, I’m here to pick up a scarf?” Kei says, not making any eye contact with the guy, still busy taking his phone out of the bag.

“Yep! I have your scarf right here!” the guy exclaims, before audibly, though softly, gasping. “Woah,” he says, pure stupor in his words.

Kei’s eyebrows wrinkle in confusion before finally making eye contact with this guy, his eyes widening when he sees him.

It’s  _ him.  _

Kei’s brain goes into a complete frenzy, individual neural impulses bursting through each part of his brain. He was not expecting this in the slightest. 

Internally shaking himself awake, he consciously realizes that he needs to say something. So gathering all of this wit and courage, Kei opens his mouth. 

“W-what?”

‘ _ OH MY GOD YOURE SO DUMB WHY ON EARTH WOULD YOU DO THAT ARE YOU STUPID IS SOMETHING WRONG WITH YOU DKFLKDFJLD UGHYHHHHHHHHHHH,” _ Kei thinks after realizing what he just said.

The guy in front of him seemingly snaps out of it, shaking his head a bit to get back to reality. 

“My bad my bad, I was just thinking out loud. Ya think I could see the confirmation email?” the guy says, question evident in his eyes. 

Kei nods and grabs his phone. Sliding into his email, he scrolls until he finds the email, twisting the phone and handing it to the guy, their hands making contact with each other. Now Kei wasn’t one for cliches, but for some reason… he wasn’t complaining. 

Scanning the email for a second, he smiles - Kei melts - and hands the phone back to Kei. He leans to his side and hands a gift bag to Kei, soft yellow tissue sticking out. The guy has a lopsided grin, and Kei can kinda feel his eyes scan his face.

“Here’s your scarf …?” the guy says, seemingly hinting for a name.

Kei grabs the bag, before nodding in greeting. “Tsukishima. My name is Tsukishima Kei.”

The guy nods before leaning once more and taking out a small paper box. 

“I got here a bit early ‘cuz I needed to go to my cousins house right after, but I got this pastry for you. Yachi said that you paid an extra twenty, so she was really happy. Happy enough to force me to buy you at pastry at least,” he grins, rubbing the back of his head with his arm.

Kei takes the box and looks into the small area of clear plastic. It was a small circular cake with whipped cream and tons of cut fruits surrounding any available inch of space. One of Kei’s favorite cakes. 

Kei can feel his mouth open a bit before realizing that the guy in front of him has gotten up from his chair and is one step away from leaving. A rush of panic surges through Kei, enough to make him turn his head and speak.

“Excuse me,” he says, using every fiber of his being to not yell.

The guy turns around in response, question evident on his face. 

Kei takes a breath before speaking again. “May I know your name?” he asks, his tone light at the end, as if he was making a request instead of asking a question. 

The guy lets out a smile, and Kei feels his insides turn to gush. He can see more of the guy here than from the picture. Kei can see the black studs on both ears, and the dark blue industrial piercing in one of them. Looking at his hands, Kei can see chipped white nail polish adorning the guy's hands, the chipping oddly looking good on him. Looking back at his face, Kei can see a sliver of silver eyeliner, the color reminding Kei of the shiny material in the scarf. The eyes that he’s - not so discreetly - staring at crinkle with a grin. 

“I’m Yamaguchi Tadashi,” he responds, his head facing Kei, while his body faces the door. 

Kei nods and realizes that he has no idea about what to do next. Yamaguchi seems to sense this, because he swivels his body towards Kei and sticks out his arm.

“It’s nice meeting you, Tsukishima~” Yamaguchi slides out.

Kicking his body into full gear, Kei sticks out his hand and tentatively places it into Yamaguchi’s.

“It’s nice to meet you too.”

Yamaguchi slightly shakes his hand before letting go, and smoothly taking out his phone from his pocket. 

“Oh fuck, I really need to go now. I’ll see you around Tsukki!” Yamaguchi says, while simultaneously maneuvering backwards through the cafe, before reaching the door and walking out. Kei barely registers the nickname though. 

The only thought on his mind was Yamaguchi Tadashi.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HEY HEY HEY I HOPE YOU ENJOYED!!
> 
> I'm going to try to upload as quickly as I can, but school is unfortely a thing so there could be delay's but it would probably only be a week or two. :D
> 
> See you next time and thank you for reading!!
> 
> comments and suggestions are welcome!


	3. that warm funny feeling

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello omnes!! (that means everyone in latin)
> 
> Welcome to chapter three of this fic! It took a bit longer to get everything I wanted in there, hence the delay. I know I didn't really make it clear, but the chapter are most likely going to be posted on the weekend, and if not then it'll just be posted a bit late. But, I'm always going to upload, and for now it's gonna be every week, unless mentioned. 
> 
> For music recs for this, I would recommend anything that makes you feel all fluttery in your stomach. Some recs for you though!  
> RIGHT CLICK TO OPEN IN ANOTHER TAB  
> [ All The Stars (slowed & reverb)- SZA & Kendrick Lamar](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SPBVVzttXIM)  
> [ Fairy of Shampoo- dosii](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vnzHgu7mnwA)
> 
> That should be it and I really hope you like it! 
> 
> <3

‘ _ What the fuck.’ _

That was an accurate representation of what was going through Tadashi’s mind. 

Well that and, ‘ _ Holy shit that guy was hot. _ ’ 

Tadashi could feel his cheeks all warm, and his head felt like it was on fire. Flashbacks of making intense eye contact with his middle school crush came back to him in what felt like seconds. Lifting his arm, Tadashi placed his palm on his cheek, retracting it quickly. Either his hands were really cold or his face was just very warm. 

Thinking back to the guy, it made complete sense that he was flustered. Tadashi could feel his heart get all giddy with the image of the guy he had just handed off the scarf to. Shaggy blonde hair, the ends reaching the end of his ears. He had gold circular framed glasses on his eyes, making his golden eyes just seem so much more brighter. The guy was wearing a navy blue sweater above a white collared shirt, dark loose pants and combat boots just making him look *chefs kiss,* and while it was only for a bit, Tadashi could see two light dimples visible when he talked, restraining himself quite a bit to not swoon. T

Finally arriving at the bus stop, Tadashi slid his phone out from his pocket, quickly checking for any messages. He had two from Yachi - probably asking about the delivery - and two from his parents, one from his mom and one from his dad. Hearing the bus horn, Tadashi looked up and walked in. As he swung into an empty seat, he opened his dad's message.

**Pops:** _ Your mother is flipping out. Please answer your phone, she's driving me crazy _

Tadashi snickered at his dad's words before flipping into his mother's messages. 

**Mama:** _Honeyyyy, I found this really cool tux for you to wear to Teja’s wedding! Make sure you pick it up before next week okay?_

Tadashi smiled and quickly sent a response, telling her that yes he would be there and yes he remembered the wedding was next week. Tadashi was famous for his horrible memory, and he knew that himself, often feeling paranoid of things he’s forgotten. He knew for a fact that he wouldn’t forget this though, simply because he loved weddings. Especially South Asian ones. 

Tadashi grew up with South Asian people, his culdesac often bursting with firecrackers during Diwali or being completely colored during Holi, and of course that meant he had been to his fair share of weddings. Just thinking about how fun they were, a flash of excitement rushed through Tadashi’s chest. There would often be tons of people dancing and enough food to feed a whole army. Tadashi loved the music, the songs either about living life to the fullest, or about pure unadulterated love. 

Oh how Tadashi loved love songs. He loved how the two people would look at each other. He loved the comfort the sweet melodies would give. He loved how the composer was able to make Tadashi feel like he himself was in love. 

With a dopey smile, Tadashi leaned against the bus window and plugged in his earbuds. After scrolling for a second, he settled on a sweet love song, the beginning strings making him feel all warm inside. The warmness reminded Tadashi of the other warm feeling he felt today, his mind coming back to the ashy blonde from Sakonoshita. Letting out a small soft laugh, Tadashi smiled, the song, the sun, and the spectacled man making him feel warm. 

++++

Entering his apartment, Tadashi cringed as his stomach rumbled. Once he slid his shoes off, he poked his head into the kitchen, grinning when he saw his two friends. 

With grandeur Tadashhi lets out a, "IM HOME KIDS!"

Both Hinata and Yachi jump and swivel their heads, before making eye contact with Tadashi and bursting out laughing.

Yachi smiles before dragging Tadashi over to the wok, where Hinata is blatantly not making eye contact with Tadashi, his eyes focused on sizzling chow mein.

Yachi grins mischievously before finally squealing out, "Hinata has a date!" whilst simultaneously jumping up and down. Tadashi takes note of how quickly Hinata whips his head, inwardly chuckling at the look on his face. 

Tadashi opens his mouth with a grin, eager to say something when Yachi cuts him off.

"And guess with who?" she questions.

Tadashi quickly scans his brain for anyone to make Yachi this excited, before realizing and gasping, "Kageyama!?" 

Yachi squeals and nods, lifting up on her tippie toes to reach both of their necks and drag them down into a chokehold-hug.. Yamaguchi laughs, both at Yachi’s exuberance and at the audible sigh Hinata produces as a result. 

Breaking from Yachi’s chokehold, Hinata looks at Yamaguchi with a dead look. “It’s not a date, really. He just invited me to his birthday party in two days, along with permission to bring you two.”

Tadashi can see the unease in Hinata’s face as he speaks, the flash of insecurity that was in him mere hours ago now in one of his best friends. Tadashi knew Hinata back and front, and for the longest time, maybe even before they met, Hinata had one main insecurity. The question in his mind always being, ‘ _ Am I anything without my friends? Do people like me for me or for others?’ _

Smiling, he rested his hand on Hinata’s shoulder and questioned, “Well did he invite YOU, or did you invite yourself?”

Wordlessly, Hinata pulled out an envelope from his cardigan pocket and handed it to Tadashi, his eyes still not leaving the noodles. Opening the envelope, Tadashi took out the small printer paper invitation, chicken scratch handwriting revealing the details of the party. Snorting, Tadashi chuckles, “Who the hell uses invitations now?” 

At this Hinata’s face turned from one of indifference to one of defense, his eyes becoming stone as he turned to Tadashi, his mouth in a straight line. Tadashi thought he might have gone too far before Hinata’s face melted into a more flustered expression, both Tadashi and Yachi laughing at what came next. 

“Shut up Yama! PERsonally I think it’s cute! He doesn’t need the approval of uncultured brats like you,” he sassed, sticking his tongue out to finish it. 

Tadashi rolled his eyes and smirked, “Yeah, yeah whatever you say lover boy,” he chuckled, sliding into the seat at the kitchen table before a realization blinked into Tadashi’s mind. 

“Yo wait, did you say the two of us?” he asked, making eye contact with Yachi whilst standing up. 

Hinata looked up at him and nodded, “Yep yep. Apparently there were only gonna be six people there anyway, so he said I could bring you guys as well. Y’know, the more the merrier.”

Tadashi narrowed his eyes in contemplation while sitting back down. Should he go? He hadn’t been to a party in ages, college being an asshole as usual. Would he be able to smooth into party culture? What if he was awkward? What if he said something stupid? Tadashi's eyes started to shake, either from excitement or dread.

Yachi, being as attentive as she is, seemed to pick up on this doubt almost immediately. "Welllll, me and Amanai are gonna go too, so even if you can't find anything to do, we'll be there. Okay?" she finished, the small grin on her face providing some comfort for Tadashi. Grinning back, Tadashi nodded and looked down at his phone. ' _ Birthday party, huh?'  _ he thought. ' _ I'm gonna need to get a gift.' _

+++

Two days passed quickly. 

IS WHAT TADASHI WANTED TO SAY.

Tadashi didn't know it was universally possible for two days to go so slow. And don't get him wrong, it wasn't the ' _ OH MY GOSH IM SO EXCITED THAT TIME SEEMS TO BE SO SLOW'  _ trope. No no no no. 

Turns out that whoever this 'Kageyama' was, his birthday was on the day of the solstice. One of the longest days (well technically night) of the whole year, and the day’s just seemed to drag out. Tadashi was so over it, his professors somehow deciding THOSE. TWO. DAYS. would be the days that Tadash gets multiple projects, a dozen assignments, and one test. Again. All of that. IN TWO DAYS.

Tadashi was so over it, that by the time he came back on the day of the party - everything finished because Tadashi's cool like that - he didn't even REMEMBER it. 

So needless to say, he was pretty confused when Kanoka showed up at his door, cladded in a pristine maroon two piece, a classic white button-up underneath. After two seconds of just staring, Kanoka rolled her eyes and laughed, "Tadashi. The party."

Tadashi stared at her for another two seconds before it finally clicked, his eyes dilating and his body kick-starting, beelining for his bedroom to get ready. 

By the time he was done, all three of his friends were waiting in the living room, every single one of them looking stunning (Tadashi's a simp for his friends and I don't blame him). Hinata went with the simple black distressed jeans, the rips showing off his tan kneecaps. On top, a simple ash-gray crew neck, the cloudy color complementing his wild and undone hair. Yachi's look was simple as well, a dark blue maxi dress with black Timberlands. Her hair was done in a bun, and her ears had multiple gold earrings. 

Upon seeing Tadashi, everyone whooped, partly because they could get going and also because Tadashi looked really good. It was a pretty simple outfit, tan straight pants as well as a black button down. He had on white sneakers and his hair was done in a half bun and half down, the tufts of hair not in a bun spiking out in a way only Tadashi could pull off. 

Smiling at whoops, he gestured at the door to get moving, everyone getting up and walking through the door. Turning around, Tadashi locked the door and started walking to his car, only to see Hinata walking the other direction. 

"What are you doing, it's only a two minute walk away?" Hinata asked innocently. 

Everyone stared, the temperature dropping to arctic levels. 

"Fine, ten minute walk," he weakly suggested. 

It was Neptune level temperatures. 

Groaning and walking in the direction of Tadashi's car, he mumbled, "It's not my fault you guys can't walk for twenty minutes."

The rest of the crew grinned, Kanoka jesting, "Well you're the only one with the energy level of mothafuckin Hercules." The other two giggled with laughter, while Hinata pouted. 

The drive was surprisingly short, Kageyama's apartment seemingly right next to campus. Sliding into the parking, Tadashi looked at the apartment building before double checking the address. After triple checking that he was in fact in the right place, Tadashi wordlessly took two fingers and pointed towards the building, signifying that it was the right place. As he ticked the ignition off and slid out, he nodded towards Hinata. 

"How many people did you say would be there again," Tadashi questioned, knowing that the apartments in front of him can't hold that many people. 

Walking towards the stairs, Hinata answered as he climbed. "Six. Two of his friends from highschool, two senior friends and his best friend."

Yachi clapped at that. "Awh he's has a best friend! Maybe you can hang with him Yama!"

Tadashi smiled and nodded. Reaching the final floor, the group walked to the final door before Hinata knocked twice. After a couple of seconds, a guy with incredibly dark blue hair opened the door, a previous pout melting into a slight smile.

"Hinata," the man said breathlessly, his eyes completely ignoring the rest of the group, lasering onto the ginger. 

Hinata's neck turned a bit red, and Tadashi could only hope for the sake of Hinata that whoever this guy was, he was dense.

With a soft, almost loving voice, Hinata responded, "Happy Birthday Tobes."

Tadashi's only thought was,  _ 'what the fuck is a Tobes?' _ when the guy seemed to snap out of the stupor he was in, gesturing for everyone to come in. 

Slipping their shoes off, the little group stood right next to the door as introductions commenced.

Excitedly, Hinata started while pointing at his friends, "This is Yamaguchi, he may seem gentle and kind but he's a menace, feel free to tell him th-OW YAMA! Anyway, this is Yachi aka weasel, because she's a brat, but don't call her that otherwise wise she'l- AHHDH YACHI STOP! Okay okay, anyway this Kanoka, Yachi's girlfriend, also the only one I like because she's nice and does- WOULD YOU GUYS STOP HITTING ME?!" 

Tadashi knew that if he were in an anime at that moment, he and Yachi would have had that mark of frustration. Looking back at who Tadashi only assumed was Kageyama, he stuck his hand out.

"Yamaguchi Tadashi. Pleasure to meet you."

Kageyama looked at his hand, before sliding in as well. "Kageyama Tobio, thanks for coming." Letting go of Tadashi, hand he pointed towards the hallway. "Go that way and take a right, there should be some drinks and snacks and stuff." 

Tadashi nodded and walked according to the direction, tuning out of his other friend's introductions. The end of the hallway led to a wide living room, a TV tucked in one corner and a wide glass door right next to it. Looking out, Tadashi could see campus if he tried. As he looked around, he made eye contact with a bowl of pita chips, and his body kick-started. Scooping some up into a styrofoam bowl, he snickered. Both Yachi and Hinata hated pita chips for some reason, and Tadashi barely ever got any. Filling his bowl up to the brim, he turned quickly eagerly awaiting the salty heaven which was Naked Pita Chips. 

And he would have, if it wasn't for the person blocking his way.

Due to the fast movement and abrupt stop, the bowl crashed into this man's chest, the styrofoam cracking and the chips falling on the floor. Wincing, Tadashi quickly backed up.

"Yo, you gotta be a bit more careful…" his words dying out as Tadashi saw who it was.

What the fuck was romance boy doing here? Tsukki? What the fuck was Tsukki doing here?

Tsukki seemed to be realizing who it was too, his mouth slowly opening and closing. 

Tadashi felt nervousness bubble up inside him. ' _ Did I piss this guy off?'  _ he couldn't help but wonder. He felt like he couldn't look at the guy, Tsukki looking at him like he just called the moon cheese. Tadashi felt bad, did he just traumatize this poor guy with pita chips?

"Are you allrig-" he started, only to get interrupted. 

"IF YOU WERE A FRUIT, YOU WOULD BE A FINEAPPLE!" he yelled, his eyes widening as he realized what he said, Tadashi's eyes widening with him.

….what?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HEY HEY HEY I HOPE YOU ENJOY!!
> 
> This was probably one of my favorite chapters so far, and I hope you liked the little mini details I placed in there! :
> 
> So for this chapter, some notes are that:  
> \- This is set in America, probably a university town.   
> \- All of them grew up in Japanese households, which is the reason that they use their first name and last name interchangeably.   
> \- If you really want to know, in this fic, Yamaguchi is Bi, Yachi is lesbian, Hinata is Pan, Kageyama is gay, Tsukki is gay, and Kanoka is bi.
> 
> Those are all the serious notes, in terms of funny ones:  
> \- Hinata talks about his friends with Kageyama, hence Kags inviting them.  
> \- Yamaguchi, Yachi, and Kanoka all have a class together, which is why Yams is close to Kanoka. (Yachi is close to Kanoka cuz their dating)  
> \- Tsukishima doesn't know how to flirt.   
> \- Once, Yamaguchi forgot the address and ended up at a Caribbean themed baby shower. By the time he realized, he felt to awkward to leave, so he stayed the entire time. Which is why he triple checked the address when he arrived. 
> 
> I also added some South Asian stuff, because I see that very little in fanfics and I always feel the need to lol. 
> 
> Yep that should be It!! My notes have been acting wonky, so if there is anything under this please ignore it ;D
> 
> See you next time!! (comments and suggestions are welcome and loved!)


	4. party, party, yeah~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey hey hey! finally a chapter is out!!
> 
> sorry for being extremely late with this chapter. school has been catching up to me :(
> 
> no song recs for this time, i am very sleepy and its about to be 1 on a school night, so no links, but Disturbia would be pretty cool because it's in the fic!
> 
> i love you guys and thank you for being so lenient! i hope you have fun reading!

Kei savored the condensation on the side of the can, the cold helping calm down the warmth of embarrassment. 

‘ _ I cannot believe I did that. I cannot BELIEVE I did that. WHY ON EARTH DID I DO THAT?! _ ’ was practically the only thing being said in his mind. Gulping, Kei turned and walked to the couch facing the people getting hyped to Just Dance. Wordlessly, he handed the soda to the person on the other cushion, sitting on the other side of him. Kei heard a * _ click*  _ of a soda can, some silence, and then a gulp, a little sigh escaping. 

"Pick-up lines huh?" Yamaguchi teased, Kei could hear the smile in his voice.

Making no eye contact whatsoever, Kei nodded. "It's the best way of flirting."

Yamaguchi chuckled, the individual giggles sounding like bells to Kei's ears. 

"Where on earth did you hear that?" he giggled, leaning forward in laughter. Kei felt heat rise up to his ears. He knew he shouldn't have listened to Sugawara. He should've known the only person who would be able to fall for a brat like him would be Daichi. Kei mentally smacked himself in the forehead and was about to internally freak out, but a soft voice brought him back.

"Hey hey, it's alright. I personally really like pick-up lines so you're a-okay!" Yamaguchi said, a bright smile tempting to make Kei go blind. "It's quite the coincidence we meet here again, don't you think?" 

Kei looked at him and nodded his head slowly. "Well I knew Kageyama had a crush on some red-head, but I didn't think that would lead to me meeting you again."

Yamaguchi smiled and shook his head before stopping mid-shake. Suddenly, he leaned over to Tsukishima, the distance between their faces decreasing immediately. Kei could smell the cologne Yamaguchi was wearing from this distance, the slight expensive smell ringing pleasantly in Kei's mind. He tried to concentrate, paying attention to Yamaguchi's words. 

"Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait. You're telling me..that  _ your _ friend Kageyama..has a crush on  _ my  _ friend Hinata?" he whispered, his eyes wide with something that Kei couldn’t really pinpoint. 

Kei slowly nodded, and felt his own eyes widen as he saw the grin on Yamaguchi’s face. Following Yamaguchi’s gaze, Kei sees Hinata on the couch, a dazed look on his face as he watches Tobio attempt to dance to “Moves Like Jagger” by Maroon 5. His face was flushed with a pretty rose color, either due to the alcohol or the awkward dancing man in front of him. Realizing pretty quickly, Kei quickly swivels his head towards Yamaguchi. 

“Does…?” Kei starts, hinting towards Hinata and Tobio. 

Yamaguchi’s smile stretches even wider, before softly nodding. Kei lets out a small grin. Tobio had been talking about Hinata forever, and while he didn’t really know what he saw in the hyper redhead, he was very happy for his friend. ‘ _ They look nice together _ ’ Kei thinks as he watches Hinata and Tobio argue whether to play “Dance the Night Away” or “Teenage Dream” both wrestling to get the Nintendo Switch joy con. 

Kei hears Yamaguchi clear his throat, and looks up, seeing a teasing, and if Kei was  _ really _ paying attention, kind of a flirty look on Yamaguchi’s face. 

“Would you like to play Just Dance?” he says, the serious tone of his voice providing a hilarious contrast with the playful look on his face. 

Kei wanted to do no such thing.

It must have shown up on his face because Yamaguchi burst out in laughter. “You should see your face man!” he wheezed, “No need to do it if you’re that bad!”

Kei frowned. It wasn’t that he was bad. He just didn’t feel like dancing in front of his - now very apparent to Kei - crush. 

“Oh yeah?” Kei taunted. “I’d like to see you try. Let’s see, if you get four stars or above on Disturbia, I’ll dance,” he suggested, attempting to turn the tease on in his voice. 

Yamaguchi’s eyes narrowed in response to the challenge. “Oh you’re on buttercup. Disturbia is an easy win.”

Kei plastered a smirk on his face, completely ignoring the fact that he felt like jello inside. ‘ _ That should be illegal, _ ’ he couldn’t help thinking in regards to the nickname. His eyes followed Yamaguchi as he pressed the buttons to get to Disturbia, everyone surrounding him starting to hype him up upon seeing his choice. 

Smirking, Kei sat back. What Yamaguchi didn’t know was that Disturbia was actually one of the hardest Just Dances out there. The rhythm was unstable, and it had awkward poses that don’t correlate with the speed, making it incredibly hard for getting above three stars, much less four stars. Not to mention, it was incredibly hard to not look stupid doing it. Kei would know. 

When Yamaguchi started dancing, Kei felt like a spotlight had been placed upon him. Yamaguchi was able to hit every beat, getting ‘perfects’ almost every time. Getting up, Kei walked and sat in the beanbags facing the dancer, Yamaguchi smiling when seeing him. Kei knew that if he sat like this he wouldn’t be able to see the score, but frankly, he didn’t care.

The sultriness of the song combined with the confident expression on his face made Kei realize some things. Number one, he was definitely going to lose this bet. Number two, judging on how good Hinata and Yachi were at Just Dance, they probably had Just Dance in their apartment, meaning that Yamaguchi had probably known this was the hardest one. 

And number 3, Yamaguchi was fucking hot. 

The three minutes of the song seemed to pass quickly, the final steps becoming clear to Kei. Standing still, Yamaguchi did the hand movements, finally making straight eye contact with Kei since he moved positions in the room. At the last step, Yamaguchi lifted his head, boring his eyes into Kei’s. With a confident smirk - unbeknownst to anyone else at the party - Yamaguchi lets out a quick wink, and Kei can PHYSICALLY feel his heart stop. 

‘ _ What on earth was that? _ ’ he can’t help thinking.

With a smirk, Yamaguchi raises his eyebrows in the direction of the TV, gesturing towards the screen. Getting himself up, Kei walks forward, twisting his neck to see the score. 

Five stars. 

‘ _ OH HELL NAH’ _

+++

“BAHAHAHAAHAHAHAHAAH”

Kei glared at Yamaguchi’s laughing face. In accordance with the bet, Kei was forced to dance. Out of every song that Yamaguchi could have picked, he picked “Daddy” by PSY. Now Kei was all for K-Pop, and he very well knew that PSY was the king. But the dance for “Daddy”... well lets just say it was very humorous. Enough to make every, single, person in the party burst out laughing. Kei quickly escaped to the balcony, the redness in his face overtaking every inch. It had been way past sunset, and the night sky shined in wonderful darkness. 

It barely took a minute for Yamaguchi to slide the door and enter the balcony, letting out an audible shiver upon entering the balcony. Still laughing, he leaned his back against the rail and looked at Kei. 

“You are incredibly funny Tsukki,” he giggled, the laughs finally evening out into more speech. Kei looked at him, and didn’t want to look away. The light from the living room gave him almost an angel-like glow creating beautiful shadows among his features. His little ponytail looked immensely fitting for his face structure, and little wisps of his hair framed his cheekbones, outlining his freckles. Kei could see little dots in Yamaguchi’s eyes, the stars reflecting in his dark irises. Yamaguchi gave off the slight scent of sweat, that for some reason combined with his cologne wonderfully. 

Yamaguchi looked like he hung the sky, and Kei felt like he was the moon meant to stay by his side. 

He tilted his head to face Kei, raising his eyebrows in question upon seeing Kei’s eyes on him. Kei shook his head, and smiled, staring at the city lights in front of him. They looked lovely tonight, the lights in the background blending, while the individual lights closer seemed so much brighter. 

“I think you’re the fineapple between us Tsukki.”

Kei whipped his head towards Yamaguchi, not really expecting any talking. It takes a bit for it to register, but when it does Kei presses his mouth together in annoyance. 

Yamaguchi laughs, “I meant it as a compliment, buttercup.”

Kei frowns even harder, “Well this buttercup was very embarrassed.”

Yamaguchi grinned, glancing down at his phone when it lit up. Reading the message, he stood up straight, his eyes wide. 

“Oh fuck….” he whispered running his fingers through his hair.

Kei stood straight as well, quickly facing Yamaguchi. “Is everything alright?” he asked, trying his best to remain calm. Kei didn’t know Yamaguchi very well, he had no idea how on Earth he would comfort him if something was wrong. 

Yamaguchi looked at him and nodded quickly, “Hey hey everything is okay! My mom just sent me a text about a wedding I’m going to in two days. And well now I’m freaking out.” He twisted the phone to show Kei. Kei bent down to get a look, smiling when he read the messages. 

**Mama** **:** Hey baby! Teja just told me that all her bridesmen have to have dates! You think you get one by the day after? You better! :P

“Now I need to find a date. Both Yachi and Hinata have classes on that day, so they can’t come to the wedding itself, much less be my date.” he sighed. 

Tsukki smiled and put a hand on Yamaguchi’s shoulder. “You’ll be fine. I think you’re a wonderful person. Anyone would be happy to be your date Yamaguchi. ”

Yamaguchi looked at Kei and smiled, a soft look in his eyes, before quickly changing to one of realization and mirth. 

“Anyone?” he asked, his eyes narrowed and a grin on his face.

Kei raises an eyebrow in question, before slowly nodding. He was a bit confused. 

“Hey Tsukki?” Yamaguchi asked. Kei nodded in response, nudging Yamaguchi to continue. 

“You free in two days?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hello! i hoped you like it!
> 
> headcannons:  
> \- hinata, yachi, and yamaguchi are amazing at Just Dance  
> \- yamaguchi gets kinda cocky when he's confident  
> \- tsukki likes Just Dance, but only when it's him and his brother
> 
> that should be it! please comment anything you want me to elaborate on! i really enjoy doing that!
> 
> thank you for reading! (comments and suggestions are welcomed!)


	5. fake datin- dancing! dancing, totally not dating. totally.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey, hey, hey!
> 
> welcome to chapter 5! 
> 
> I really wanted to make this chapter longer, but time has not been my friend in the last couple of days. This chapter takes place literally RIGHT after the last chapter. Like it literally goes, "You free in two days?" "Sorry?" that's it. 
> 
> I'm sorry that this chapter isn't longer, and i really wish it was, but my mind isn't in the most productive area at the moment, so it might take a while for the next chapter to come, approximately in a week or a week in a half. 
> 
> Music Recommendation: (OPEN IN A NEW TAB)  
> [Yoh Kamiyama - Irokousui ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pobm9-hQ9Xk&t=13s)  
> (ALSO HORIMIYA IS AMAZING AND I LOVE IT!)
> 
> Thank you for reading, and I hope you enjoy!

"Sorry?"

Realizing what he just said, Tadashi eyes widened, his eyebrows quickly raising up in shock. " _ Oh great, now you've done it. You're so stupid, good lord how on earth- OKAY WAIT HES LOOKING YOU NEED TO SAY SOMETHING!"  _ his mind told him in a frenzy. 

Clearing the knot in his throat, Tadashi turned and faced Tsukishima, "Well, uh, oh gosh I really hope I'm not misunderstanding this, but uh, well you said that anyone would be lucky to go with me right? Well I was just thinking, you know since you're super cool and all, if, uh maybe you wanted to come? Y'know? With? Me?"

Tadashi hadn't been able to make eye contact when he said anything, the mistake still buzzing through his head. He had literally just met Tsukishima, how on earth could he ask him to a wedding, that too as his date? He had probably creeped the man out with his overexcited mind.  _ "It's a shame,"  _ he couldn't help but think, " _ he was really nice too. I can't force him though. You can't force him." _

"On second thought, no need, I can convince Teja and my mom," Tadashi started, only to be interrupted. 

"I'll go with you." Tsukishima said, his face portraying someone comforting. Tadashi's face must have shown confusion, or at least some doubt because Tsukishima spoke again. "To the wedding, I mean."

Tadashi never really forgot the way Tsukishima looked that day. The lights from behind made him look angelic, and the darkness from the night sky made one side of his face look, almost painted, the darkness of his shadows overlapping with the brightness of his features. A little breeze swept through just then, and Tsukishima's longish locks buzzed away with the wind. Tadashi was stunned.

Realizing that at this point, he was blatantly staring, he kickstarted his brain into working. 

"What? Why?"

" _ Really smooth you idiot."  _ he complained to his brain.

Tsukishima looked to the side, scrunching his eyebrows in thought. He looked back at the view, Tadashi taking it as an invitation to go back to his position as well, leaning his neck a bit back to look at the sky. There was no roof on Tsukishima's balcony, Tadashi assumed because it was the highest floor. He didn't mind though, the stars were wonderful tonight. 

He jolted when Tsukishima spoke again, the quiet breaking. 

"I mean, I haven't been to a South Asian one before. My friends senior, Iwaizumi, is half-Indian, half-Japanese, and they said South Asian parties are a blast. Teja is a South Asian name right? I'm sorry if I'm wrong."

Tadashi stared at him for a second, a bit stunned, before nodding, "You're good, you're good. I'm related to her by marriage, my mom's brother marrying my aunt, who's from India as well. It's funny though, my aunt on my dad's side married someone from Pakistan. My parents actually bonded over the fact that they had South Asian sibling-in-laws."

Tadashi looked at Tsukishima, expecting to see a out of zone face, instead seeing a look of concentration. People tended to zone out when Tadashi talked about his family, not really caring about people Tadashi cared about. It warmed his heart a bit seeing Tsukishima listen to him. It was the bare minimum, but it was there.

Realizing that he was done talking, Tsukishima slowly nodded, "I see. That's quite a family tree you got there. You must go to a lot of South-Asian parties I assume."

Tadashi could feel his eyes light up. "Yeah I do! Tsukki, lemme tell you, they're so much fun. There's amazing food, like everything you can think of. The music is great! Most of the time I can't understand it, but the music? Great. Dancing is so much fun too. Everyone's happy because someone is getting married. It's the best!"

"All the more reason I want to go with you."

Tadashi whipped his head towards Tsukishima, his lips lifting slightly upon seeing him doing anything but look at Tadashi. " _ That's cute,"  _ he couldn't help but remark in his brain. 

Chuckling, he turned, leaning his against the railing with his stomach rather his back. He put a forearm on the rail, taking the other arm to cradle his chin. Pasting on the most enticing look he could conjure up, Tadashi spoke, trying his very best to sound confident. 

"Now that's how you flirt," he started. He got up now, standing straight and looking down at Tsukishima, who was still leaning onto the railing. Adding a last spoke of flirt into his voice, he started to speak. "It's a shame though really."

Tsukishima's expression turned to one of confusion. Tadashi smiled on the inside, patting himself on the back for not breaking out of his flirtatious side. Gearing up for one last hit, Tadashi made direct eye contact and took his shot.

"I was looking forward to teaching you myself."

Tsukishima's eyes widened and even in the night, Tadashi could see a bit of red flush through his face. Tadashi thought he looked wonderful. "What's your number?" he asked.

Tadashi smiled seeing Tsukishima shake a bit. It felt a bit reassuring that he wasn't the only one who did that. 

"456-817-1111" ( **a.n.: IDK IF THIS IS A REAL NUMBER PLEASE DON'T TRY CALLING IT** )

Whisking his phone out, Tadashi quickly put the number in, shocking himself about how he actually remembered it. He wasn't really good at remembering short term things, only remembering things that mean a lot. After filling out the number, he looked at the 'Name' slot, thinking about what he should put, before deciding on something. After scrolling a bit, Tadashi smiled as he clicked on the emoji. Turning his phone around he showed Tsukishima his profile. 

_ Tsukishima _ 🌕

"Tsuki means moon right? I wanted to do a firefly for Kei but it doesn't exist." Tadashi whined.

"You remember my name?" Tsukishima said, a bit of stupor evident in his voice.

Tadashi turned to face him once more. He shocked himself. He did remember didn't he? Huh. How odd.

There were a couple taps on the glass, both Tsukishima and Tadashi turned to find out why. Kanoka looked a bit guilty as she pointed to the exit, then pointing to her, Yachi (who was passed out drunk) in her arms, and Hinata who was leaning heavily into Kageyama. Tadashi understood, nodding his head and pointing up one finger, implying for a minute.

Tsukishima had stood up straight by now, catching the whole interaction, and assuming that Tadashi was leaving. Tadashi looked up at him, trying to observe everything in the five seconds he had to preserve awkwardness. Tsukishima had a slight scar on his eyebrows, a scar showing up. He seemed to have pierced his nose once as well, a small indent on his nostrils standing out to Tadashi. Finally, he looked at Tsukishima's eyes. They were a pretty goldish brown, and they seemed to glow. Tadashi could admit and would admit, he looked beautiful. 

"I'll text you, buttercup." Tadashi said, trying to remain calm. 

The blonde in front of him immediately turned a bit pink, but nodded. "I'll be looking forward to it, fineapple."

Tadashi giggled, and walked towards the glass door, sliding it open before twisting his waist and looking back.

"See you," he whispered, lowering his volume to not alert Hinata of his - maybe? - date. 

Tsukishima softly smiled, Tadashi reveling in the fact he could see all of it now, the lights facing the blonde. He looked even better. 

"See you."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hello hello! I hope you enjoyed
> 
> I hope you liked the descriptions of Tsukki because there was a description of Yamaguchi last chapter. Originally, I was going to skip over this scenario and go to directly to the next morning, especially because I'm not the best with conversations. But I pushed myself, and I hope it's okay.
> 
> Thank you for reading! (comments and suggestions are welcomed!)


	6. how ironic~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello hello! 
> 
> Very sorry that this chapter is late! I've been pretty busy cuz of school and stuff, and while this fic was in the back of my mind, I couldn't work on it as much as I wanted to. This chapter might also be a bit choppy, so I apologies for that!
> 
> Again sorry that this chapter is late, but it's pretty long, so I hope it makes up for it. 
> 
> Song Recs! (OPEN IN NEW TAB)  
> [Your Eyes Tell - BTS](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KVAt8jwUobI)  
> [Curiosity - Amber Lui](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AAHaq0PiJvI)

“Ugh, Teja why the hell did you need me to come? Shouldn’t you have finished by now?”

Tadashi really couldn’t understand the reason why HE was always the one to be part of people’s escapades. Did he have some nut gene that attracted people to ask him for favors? 

Teja had woken him up at six in the morning, kicking him out and forcing him into a car in the wee hours of the morning. Hinata and Yachi hadn’t been any help either, simply laughing and recording the interaction between Tadashi and his cousin. Both of them were early risers - much to Tadashi’s dismay - and they loved to troll Tadashi when he could barely function and retaliate. 

Sitting in the driver’s seat, Teja laughed, “Well of course I would ask my  _ favorite  _ cousin for the final check. You don’t think I would do it alone? The day before my wedding too?”

Tadashi glared at her, before grumbling and looking through the window. It was barely eight-thirty on a winter morning, so the sun was taking it’s time to rise. The goldish color of the sky reminded him of something. He absentmindedly reached over to the car console, turning on the radio, bopping his head when he hears the song.  _ 'Mooooooves like jagger~'  _ his mind sings.

Teja glanced at him and smiled, "I heard from Shoyou that you went to a party yesterday?"

Tadashi nodded, "Yes, it was Hinata's crush's birthday. We went for moral support."

Teja lets out a snort at this, causing Tadashi to turn in confusion. "That's definitely not what I heard," she giggled.

Tadashi twisted his face. "Well what did you hear?" he questioned, treading lightly. Out of all of his extended family, Teja could roast the life out of him 

"Ahh nothing at all! Nothing at all…" she dragged off, turning her head back to the front window, her mouth in a small smirk. 

Tadashi smashed his eyebrows together in frustration, his hand coming up to play with his piercings out of habit.  _ "Piercings, Maroon 5, Yesterday...HOLY SHIT!" _

"TSUKKI!" Tadashi yelled, causing Teja to burst out laughing. 

"YOURE SO DUMB TADASHI, OH MY GOSH!" she laughed, her grip on the strewing wheel tightening as she drove.  **(an. please don't burst out laughing while driving, I beg of you)**

Pouting, he stuck his tongue out at Teja, before increasing the volume, and leaning his head on to the window. The sun was rising now, and the sky looked like if rainbow-corn was a color. In the middle though, a couple of clouds blocked the sun, soft yellow rays emerging from behind. Tadashi really didn't mean to be cheesy when he realizes it, but the color matches Tsukki's eyes, almost to the same pigment. 

_ "What irony," _ Tadashi thinks,  _ "I got to see the sun at night and in the morning." _

After a bit of turning, Teja finally pulls into a parking lot. Stepping out, Tadashi looks around. There were trees practically everywhere, and it looked as if the couple buildings in the area came from illustrations in a fairy tale novel. It was very different from the city that Tadashi was used to. He didn't even know that place like this existed so close to him. 

As he walked around to the front of the car, he turned to his cousin. "What are we doing here?"

Grinning, Teja placed her bag on her shoulder and looked up at the sign. "Can't ya read buddy boy? It's our florist. Jade wanted a florist close to nature, and what my girl wants my girl gets. I just needed to check if everything's set."

Tadashi frowned and smacked Teja on the shoulder, pouting even harder when she just laughed. He looks up at the sign she's looking at, chuckling at the name. 

_ What in Carnation? For all your botanical necessities! _

The sign was written a wispy, fantasy like font, the words colored in a baby blue. There was a dark background on the sign, picturing a night sky, which instead of having stars, had small flowers instead, the main focal point being a moon with vines and pretty maroon colored carnations. It was a very pretty design.

Tadashi followed his cousin to the door, his eyes lingering on the sign until it came out of his line of vision, turning his head back to almost bump into a person holding a box. 

"Oh crap that's my baaaa…" Tadashi starts, questioning the structure of time and space. Because of course Tsukki works here. There's a moon on the damn sign, of course he works here. His eyes are literal sunlight, of course he works here. Tadashi even called him buttercup, SO OF COURSE HE WORKS HERE. 

_ 'The universe must be fucking with me. First, I couldn't have my Reece's Puffs cereal. Then, I have to face the wrath of my literally about-to-married cousin gloating in my singleness. THEN, the man who was making me question the validity of our timeline shows up in front of me. I should I have just stayed home oh my go-' _

"Yamaguchi?"

Yamaguchi focuses back on Tsukki, a delay in realizing that he was looking at the buttercup -  _ oh my god -  _ in Tsukki's ears rather than AT him. 

"He-hey there Tsukki! Whatcha doin here?"

Tsukki looked down at him, a crooked grin plastered on his face. He shook his head a bit, snapping out some trance, that Tadashi couldn't blame him for because he was just in one. The grin on Tsukki's face widened a bit, before sliding the box down a bit. Tadashi's eyes went to a small badge, the same moon with the same carnations as the outside sign.

_ Kei :) _

In thin, sweet script was Tsukki's first name, the smiley face likely added later. It was a nametag. It took a second to click, but when it did, Tadashi couldn't stop the shock on his face. 

"You work here?!" he asked incredulously. 

Tsukki chuckled. "Is it that hard to believe? The store sign has a moon, and my name is  _ Tsuki _ shima?"

It caught up to Tadashi right then. Heck, he even had a moon as Tsukki's contact. But..why would it be related to the sign?

"Wait...oh my gosh, do you own this store?!"

Tsukki shook his head and nodded towards the back of the shop, "Nope. My brother does, I just work here sometimes. You know, extra pocket cash?"

Tadashi smiled and nodded, "No, yeah, I totally get you. The sign is really pretty by the way, I was looking at it before."

The skin around Tsukki's neck seemed to tinge red a bit and he shifted his eyes. "Oh..thanks."

Tadashi turned his head in confusion. "For what?" he replied. 

Tsukki seemed to be looking anywhere but him. "Well, because I'm the one who designed it," he answered, his voice soft. 

Tadashi could feel his eyes widen. "What?!" he exclaimed, "You did?! It looks so good!"

Tsukki nodded and gestured to the surrounding store. "I made all the designs for the store. It was my first commission. Even though it was for my brother."

"Are you on Etsy?" Tadashi wondered, thinking it was ironic how it would be for it to come full circle. 

Tsukki seemed to realize the relevance as well, smiling and shaking his head. 

"Not at the moment. I usually get recommended or reach out. There's a lot of opportunities at HQ."

Tadashi's eyes widened once more.

"You go to HQ University? I go to HQ University!" he said excitedly.

Tsukki's eyes widened similar to Tadashi's. 

"Is that so? What do you major in?"

"Nutritional Science," Tadashi replied.

Tsukki clicked his tongue in acknowledgment before nodding and speaking. 

"Well that's probably why. Our majors are quite different."

"Really? What do you major in?" Tadashi asked, eager to know why on earth he hadn't met this man before. 

"I major in zoology, and I minor in botany and art history. It's pretty spread out, but I have fun"

_ 'Three degrees? And they're so cool? What can this man not do?'  _ Tadashi couldn't help but think.

"Kei! Do you have the purple box?!" yelled a voice from further into the store. It was at this that Tadashi realized he had not even stepped five feet in the store, aside from the little opening into it. 

"I do!" Tsukishima shouted back, "I'll bring it there!" He nodded towards the back, prompting Tadashi to follow him. 

The shop had the interior of a small grocery store, around six aisles filled to the brim with flowers. The counter in the front had ribbons all around, and a glass door that Tadashi could tell clearly led to a greenhouse. Tadashi remotely realized that it was very warm in this store, and looked up to realize that the ceiling was made up of glass. He let out a little gasp upon seeing the streams of light, Tsukki turning in response.

"It's beautiful when it rains," he minutes as he walks. Tadashi shifted his head quickly, not really expecting conversation. It seemed to be a trend with Tsukishima. He wasn't complaining though. 

Tadashi hummed in response. "I bet it is. I would get scared that it would break though," he acknowledged.

Tsukishima hummed back. "It's polycarbonate, so it's actually pretty durable. It's mainly to keep the flowers in here more fresh, but we also have a greenhouse, so it's also for aesthetics. So I painted the borders. You know, that's why some of the light is streaming in color," he said, while pointing to the borders of the glass.

Tadashi fawned at the streams of colored light. "Woah, that looks amazing Tsukki!" he exclaimed.

They had gone under the panel of color at this point, and Tadashi couldn't help but halt. Tsukki stopped as well, curiosity and confusion evident on his face. For whatever scientific reason - Tadashi would leave that to Kuroo - the light seemed to make Tsukki's blind hair glow. This particular panel of glass was adorned with multiple colors, and then rays of light seemed to make Tsukki's hair rainbow. It looked straight out of a magazine, with how stunning Tsukki looked at that moment. Tadashi was speechless for a couple of seconds, but he gained his grip just as quickly. 

“Tsukki, are you aware how radiant you are?”

Tsukishima's eyes widened, and the colored light seemed to make them brighter. He stared at Tadashi for a bit, much to the displease of Tadashi, as he slowly fell into the descent of self-doubt. He was about to fall in this trench of bad thoughts, pretty much holding on by a grip.

"I think it's because I shine brighter near you, Yamaguchi."

It was Tadashi's turn to react, almost having an identical eye widen, his mouth opening just a tad. 

Tadashi seemed to realize a lot of things at once.

Tsukki was still holding the box of flowers. Tsukki was wearing a brown turtleneck. There was music playing in this store, specifically Merry-Go-Round Of Life from Howl's Moving Castle. Tsukki wore eyeliner. The flowers next to him were gloxinias. Teja was calling him. The mystery stranger was calling Tsukki. Tsukki was staring. It was very warm in the store, but not in a bad way. 

This - very pleasant - moment was ruined by said cousin. 

"Tadashi! I've been calling you for the past two minutes! What on earth are youuu…" she slowed as she made eye contact with Tsukki. Tsukki immediately stood straight, a plain look plastered on a face. Tadashi half thought it looked like an interview face, but the thought rushed to the back of his mind seeing the look on his cousin's face. She was grinning.

Oh shit. 

"Oh my! Tadashi! Who is this? Hey didn't you tell me? No introduction for your big sis? I can't believe it!" she exaggerated, making her voice into one of innocence. 

Tadashi grumbled and turned to Tsukki. 

"Tsukki, this is Teja, she's the one who is getting married tomorrow," he said in monotone. He looked at Teja and gestured towards Tsukki. "Teja, this is Tsukishima Kei, he's my dat-" he stopped mid-sentence, looking to see if Tsukki had caught it. 

He had. He looked straight at Tadashi, his eyes alive with feeling. Tadashi could almost hear what he was thinking,  _ 'Yes, I am your date. Tell her I'm your date. I’m your date to her wedding. Tell her Yamaguchi, tell her!' _

And he was about to do just that when a blonde man threw his arms around Tsukki's shoulder. 

"Woahhh! Tej, is this your cousin? Kei, you know him?"

Tsukki looked incredibly displeased, but nodded nevertheless. Tadashi got hit with a pang of deja-vu as he was introduced to Tsukishima Akiteru, Tsukki's older brother. 

"Yamaguchi, this is Akiteru, my older brother," Tsukki mellowed, using his eyes rather than his arms to convey the message. "Aki, this is Yamaguchi Tadashi, my friend and -" he paused, looking at Yamaguchi for one last confirmation. 

"-And my date for Teja's wedding."

Chaos ensued. 

“WHAT!? SERIOUSLY?! AKI WHY DIDN’T YOU TELL ME” Teja shrieked at the blonde guy. 

Akiteru fluibbered around with a frantic look on his face. “I WOULD’VE IF I KNEW!”

Looking at them, Tadashi was very puzzled. “Tej, do you know Aki?!” 

Tej looked at him bewildered. “Know him?! He’s my best friend apart from Jade, who’s about to be my wife!” she exclaimed, bemused. 

Tadashi proceeded through this slowly. “So you’re telling me...that you knew Tsukki?”

"Of course," Teja replied with a smirk.

He turned to Tsukki, who looked like he was paralyzed. “Tsukki,” Tadashi started. “Did you know that I was Teja’s cousin?”

Frantically, Tsukki shook his head. “No, no, no. I promise. I just figured out, all I knew was that Teja and Aki were friends, I swear.”

Tadashi let out a breath. ‘ _ Thank gosh.’  _ he couldn’t help but think. He really didn’t want Tsukki accepting because he knew Teja. That would imply he was doing her a favor, and not because...that he liked Tadashi. 

Aki appeared to sense the unwanted tension, and came forward to pat Tsukki’s back. “Well isn’t that ironic? Seems like we’ll be coming to your wedding at the same Tej.”

Tej grinned and gave a thumbs up. She glanced at Tadashi and Tsukki and nodded towards the back. “Alright, enough chit chat. Jade’s gonna kill me if I run late, I still need to check some other stuff. ”

Aki nodded and started to walk before turning around and finger gunning at Tsukki. “You can place the box in the greenhouse, and show Tadashi around. As your boss, that’s an order!” he quipped before pivoting and walking with Teja. 

Tsukki turned and looked at Tadashi with a displeased look. “I apologise about him. He really can’t take a hint.”

Tadashi shrugged and grinned. “I really don’t mind,” he purred, turning on his charm. 

Tsukki seemed to have gotten used to Tadashi’s flirting, merely letting out a low chuckle and walking towards the glass door. 

Tadashi followed him, clearing his throat. “Thank you for accepting by the way. I don’t think I ever said ‘thank you’?”

Twisting the door handle, Tsukki leaned his weight onto the door and pushed it open. As he walked in front, Tadashi could feel a smile in his words. 

“Don’t feel like that. I accepted because I wanted to. I wanted to go with you, Yamagcuhi. That’s why I can’t why I can’t wait for tomorrow.”

Reaching the greenhouse, Tadashi looked around. Pure sunlight was streaming through the glass windows, refreshing the heavy amounts of foliage in. It smelled divine, the many plants providing a perfume scent. Looking around, Tadashi gasped as he saw the plane outside. A full field of roses and tulips were directly outside of the glass building. Glancing around, Tadashi walked towards the door leading to the field and opened it. There was a slight breeze and Tadashi hummed at the smell and feeling combined. He gets the feeling that he’s in a coming-of-age film when he lifts his arms and his hair is flown back. 

He hears the crunch of the grass behind him, and turns to make direct eye contact with the blonde. 

“It’s beautiful Tsukki.” he said, looking at the full field of flowers. He heard a low hum, and for some reason, warmth rushed through him. Tadashi turned his head, and looked at Tsukki. No matter where he was, he seemed to glow. He felt a bit guilty, having feelings for someone he knew for maybe four days. He didn’t know if it was proper, or if the feelings were attraction. There were a lot of things that Tadashi didn’t know, but he didn’t care. Kanoka once told him he always makes things difficult for himself, and that he always tends to take the hard way out. 

Tadashi didn't want to take the hard way when it came to Tsukishima Kei.

“I can’t wait for tomorrow either, Tsukki.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey hey hey! I hope you enjoyed the chapter! it might be a bit choppy, but I still hope you enjoyed it a bit. 
> 
> fun-fact: gloxinias mean love at first sight :D  
> also, I made Tsukki a zoology major instead of the classic Paleontology one. And I also FULLY hc that he would be amazing at art, but no one knows because no one is willing to listen (other than mr yam man) :D
> 
> thank you for reading! see you next time!  
> (suggestions and comments are welcomed)


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